Shaykh Ash-Sha`rawi Opens His Heart Before His Death

Raised in Egypt’s Nile Delta village al-Dacadous, Shaykh Sharawi, who held moderate mainstream views of Islam, graduated in 1943 with an Islamic degree specializing in Arabic language. The shaykh taught at Saudi Arabia’s King Abdel Aziz University in the 1950s and 60s, and later served as Egypt’s Religious Endowments Minister in the late 70s.

When Shaykh Sha’rawi returned to Egypt in 1975, he had a lasting impact on Egypt’s television audience when he appeared in the weekly program Nur `Ala Nur. His lecturing style diverged greatly from that of traditional Azharites, conveying his wealth of Qur`anic knowledge in a style and language understandable to the common man. Shaykh Sha’rawi’s fame skyrocketed. The shaykh was universally regarded as Egypt’s top preacher. His books, tapes and videos are popular all over the Muslim world and he was given prestigious awards by a number of the Gulf States.

The shaykh’s major works include the encyclopedic Interpretation of the Holy Koran and The Great Fatwas, a collection of religious edicts and answers to questions about Islam. Shaykh Sha’rawi hosted a weekly television show during which he interpreted the Qur`an to a live audience. The show was aired daily during the Moslem fasting month of Ramadan. Shaykh Sha`rawi passed away in June 1998.

The Muslim Magazine is honored to present a new series on the spiritual experiences of the renowned scholar, the late Imam Metawalli Ash-Sha`rawi. Near the end of his days, Shaykh Sha`rawi revealed the many extraordinary occurrences he witnessed during his years as one of Egypt’s highest and most-followed scholars.

Taking place in many of the mosques and tombs of Ahl al-Bayt, the Family of the Prophet (s), these profound mystical encounters will astound the reader. Ash-Sha`rawi Unveils His Secrets was developed from interviews with the shaykh in the last year of his life, conducted in the courtyard of the mosque of Sayyida Nafisa at-Tahira, granddaughter of the Prophet (s) and one of the highly notable waliyyas (lady saint) of Cairo.

This holy mosque, like others in Cairo that house the blessed remains of Ahl al-Bayt, contains the grave of our lady Zainab (r). Millions of believers flock here each year in commemoration of the struggle waged by Ahl al-Bayt for the sake of the religion, to celebrate their lives that illuminate the history of Islam.

Amazing Accounts Revealed

In the series we intend to relate what Shaykh Sha`rawi describes as the glad tidings he received while visiting the Mosque of the Prophet (s) when the Prophet (s) appeared to him while he was in a waking state. Other narrations include the story of Shaykh Sha`rawi’s meeting with Sayyida Nafisa (r) , the story of the man who whispered a secret in the shaykh’s ear during his visit to Sayyida Sakina (r) (granddaughter of the Prophet (s)), and his spiritual encounter with Sayiddina Ibrahim al-Khalil in Makkah.

Other fascinating accounts include his dispute with the Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Abdul Aziz bin Baz, after he authorized moving Maqam Ibrahim back from its location near the Ka`aba, a disagreement which Shaykh Sha’rawi escalated until it reached the ears of King Saud. We will disclose the secrets of his vision of Sayyidina Ibrahim (as) and what he told him to say to the king, resulting in King Saud’s rejecting the decision to move the Maqam from its original location. We will also relate in this series the account of the shaykh’s meeting with the famous waliullah Sayyidina Ahmad al-Badawi (d 1276) and the good tidings he gave him: that he would go to work in Makkah.